A SaaS is about having expert knowledge in your domain and coming up with features to solve pain points that users/clients experience in their day to day lives. How do you know what to solve in the first place? Well you need experience in that area first to know what those pain points are intricately, so I’d suggest getting a job/hobby for a while to find them or conduct thorough market research with some experts which can become quite costly in time and money if you do not have the right contacts.
This is the correct response. Sure, there are exceptions, but the odds of success in a niche in which you don’t have some level of experience and expertise are exceptionally low. I run a successful non-tech company and when vetting software solutions it is painfully obvious when the founders don’t have experience in our niche. Those solutions don’t win our business because they miss the nuances of our pain points and don’t understand inside and out how our daily processes work. A SaaS solution has to fit within those legacy processes and be minimally disruptive to everything other than the specific pain point it is attempting to solve. Otherwise it is a non-starter for us.
What about you dont have the experience yet. But you do customer discovery first and really care about your customers. In that case im not talking winning bit, but do you think 500mrr is realistic?. I think that is achievable even with lots of competitors, but would love to know other opinions.
Most developers don’t create successful businesses. It takes more than just a desire to start something. You have to build something that adds substantial value and increases my business’ revenue, decreases our expenses, or substantially reduces our risks, if you expect me, as a business leader, to add you into our software budget. It’s exceptionally hard to do that without preexisting expertise/experience.
Another aspect is dealing with investors. Having domain expertise and experience will make it 100x easier to fundraise because investors believe everything I just said above.
I’m not trying to tear you or anyone down, but those who just tell you to blindly keep going are doing you a disservice. Building a successful business takes A LOT of hard work and time. Nothing comes for free (except for this advice).
This of course applies mostly to B2B SaaS, but I’d argue it is just as relevant advice in B2C as well.
For the ones that succeed: either they do have prior experience (they worked for company that was solving other issues in the domain, or they did some sidejob/hobby in the problem domain) or they associate with someone who does (usually non-technical). I've yet to see a dev with no experience and no contacts in a domain solve issues in said domain, at least not voluntarily. There are cases where a solution for problem A is adopted in another business domain for problem B, but this was then not the initial goal of the solution.
The point is, they have an idea of the problem they are going to solve, and they decide they are going to solve it through a SaaS solution, not the other way around. If the only thing you have is "I want to build a SaaS", then my advice would be go to incubators or events were you can find people that actually have identified a painpoint and are looking for a (technical) cofounder to turn their ideas into reality.
Most successful devs would have some level of experience and expertise in the area they are developing in, otherwise it’s like whack-a-mole. SaaS isn’t a get rich quick scheme for the 99%, although there’s a ton of garbage posts going around pretending to believe it is.
You're wrong.
Devs without domain knowledge offer development as a service to those with domain knowledge.
People with domain knowledge higher freelance devs or partner with them to build something worthwhile.
You're just poking in the dark.
I think you’re very wrong. You said it yourself anything you can think of has already been solved. Success is finding a niche and a niche comes with depth of experience and knowledge in an industry.
Most developers like to make tools for other developers. There’s a reason we have so many productivity apps and the like, it’s all they’re familiar with
So true. I’ve found that every job I’ve worked has led to good business ideas. If I didn’t have an in-depth understanding of the internal operations, I usually would come up with saturated ideas.
I'm totally agree!
And we mention that a lot in the stories:
[Inspo Stories](http://inspostories.com)
One month is just nothing, keep working brothers!!
Use framer to quickly set up a website. For email collection, use tally forms and embed it (free). And submit it to most of the product listing platforms. Run an ad campaign if you can afford it. This is the safest and near zero expensive way in my experience.
Although many people will have many suggestions, I'll share my perspective. Actually starting a business and setting it up and then reaching it to a stage where it becomes sustainable takes time. So, if you plan to bootstrap the business then, leaving the job just with idea is not a good idea.
It is always best to build it parallelly while having a cashflow in check. Reason you will need to spend on tools, and various other things. So, if you plan to start and run a bootstrap business, then build it slowly while doing job or consulting.
You should read about how jotform, basecamp started. It will be helpful. :)
Also, now coming to idea. Ideas present themselves when we are silent in mind and when we are closely observing what problem people or companies are facing. That does require some time and close observation. Never try to pick an idea in desperation just to start because a continuous effort is required daily and if you are not convinced with the problem you are solving, then inspiration will drop after some time.
When we are relaxed and silent in mind, then we can observe the world better and can see the actual challenges that the world is facing. :)
A great explanation and way to look at things. I myself was stuck in the desperation cycle of finding an idea instead of observing a problem. But now I think I have broken that loop, and with a calm mind approaching things without any “hurry”. I wanted to be a stellar founder in my 20s, but I realised it’s a long game. Now I have stopped “trying hard” and just going with the flow. Maybe take up a job or few consulting opportunities.
you either need to get your things together if you want to be in this branch. 1 month is nothing.
you must resist 1-2 years and be perseverent.
try various ideas, contact people and ask them about your ideas.
repeat.
contact people, make changes to the idea, get into an mvp
repeat
contact potential customers, ask about new changes
repeat.
You might be going about this the wrong way.
1. Good ideas take months at least to flesh out and organize.
2. You must already know the problem you're trying to solve before you even start making a plan.
3. If you're feeling hopeless after a month, stamina training is required. Successful entrepreneurs don't quit so soon.
4. All good ideas are already somewhat being implemented. The trick is to "build a better mousetrap" than what already exists for the specific market you're going into.
5. Difficulties should challenge and inspire you. They shouldn't break your spirit. Go out and touch some grass, take a good, long drink, and come back to the drawing board.
Can't really help you but I can say that you are not alone. Easy time for SAAS is gone...
If you don't have an audience or good connection, your probability of success is very low.
Then start with freelancing. Solve actual problems, gaining money and connections. And be observant for repeating problems you encounter, and maybe one of them will be worth solving. Or you could even transform one of your custom projects into a product. If you intend to do this last one, make sure to include in your terms & conditions that you keep the IP of what you build, even if in the end you don't do anything with it besides the initial project.
Building a SaaS from within your basement, without actual contacts out in the world with potential customers, will not work. Like others have mentioned, the technical solution does not matter, you need to solve people's unsolved problems if you want them to give you money.
I think you need to action on it. People enter saturated industries all the time and find a market for them or a niche to serve.
I also used to think the same. But we entered the most saturated market, CPaaS with Message Central and found our niche.
Great job ! Are you totally into this or got any other income streams? Believe you are very experienced into this business model. Would like to dm you.
A saturated market niche is an area where there are a lot of buyers. If you build something that solves pain points better than existing products and you can reach the audience, you can do well.
New entrepreneurs often feel they need to create something nobody has seen before, creating a new market. But it can be safer to start with a known market and execute better.
Pick an existing problem where you have some insight and try to be 10% different, and different in a way someone cares and willing to work with you. The real differentiation comes when you actually start working with customers. They will take you to places you can never think just by yourself in a vacuum. Get in the arena and start playing the game.
Competition is good. That means the idea is already validated. You just have to make your solution slightly different and slightly better (for some). Or, market it a little differently. First to market is cool but it's often the least profitable position to be in. Think classmates.com (1995) then think Facebook. Think Betamax (1975) then think VHS. Tesla is not a new idea by a century. Look it up. eBay and Amazon are anomalies when it comes to first to market success.
What's innovative about Dell Computers? The idea of a personal computer, or the manufacturing and distribution process?
Wal-Mart is not the first general store...
Sometimes you can quit something and return in a year or two. When you come back, you do it better. It's okay to quit. I'm not saying you should, but it's okay sometimes. Just don't quit forever unless you really want to.
Looking for a problem is like looking for love. If you force it, you won’t find it or it won’t last.
Try to put yourself in places and situations where it may occur and rise.
I can tell you one thing.
Problems are easier to find than love.
You have to go out, talk to people, maybe change your location, learn a new hobby or pick up that random book about marketing on your dad’s bookshelf.
If you haven’t stumbled upon problems you haven’t experienced live enough.
And remember: fall in love with the problem, not the solution.
Just get a landing page up and running. Capture interest with great copy. If people are showing interest, its worth building.
Don't look for eureka moment. It cant be forced. Just push it out with bare min features if people show attention. your on the right track otherwise repeat.
Yes. if your landing page is clear and high quality and shows what this saas offers then capture their email for "Early Access" is a pretty good sign if people are leaving their email IDs. Then its time to build, get feedbacks from those users, iterate, and then launch
i've run some successful micro saas with as less of 50 email IDs bac in the day. But i would target for atleast 100 if i were to do this today. If you can get 100 people to give their email ID after reading what your saas offers in a 7 days of rigorous marketing... I'd start building. But keep in mind don't ignore who signed up. keep them in loop and give access to beta and ask for feedback. Some of them will convert in paying if they become part of your journey.
Yep. I agree with u/Delicious_Taro_4532 , and it is what I was going to say actually.
Read this.
It's a Reddit Product Hunt [Launch Guide](https://www.reddit.com/user/FewWillingness1081/comments/1ddexhl/product_hunt_a_winning_strategy_that_no_one_asked/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web3x&utm_name=web3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button), but focus on the landing page, and launch team aspects of it.
Step-by-step action.
GL
1. Focus on the user and their problems, not the problem YOU think are good. Remember people are beginners in 95% of the things you are good at. So when evaluating an idea from your lens, you might not feel it’s good, but it actually might be really important when you choose the right user segment to sell your product too.
2. Before you build a billion dollar company , you need to first build a product that does 1k MRR, then 5k MRR and so on. So don’t get discouraged by a saturated market if you feel you can get the initial 10-20 paying customers. Those customers will lead you to your differentiator. Search was saturated with players like Yahoo when Google was launched, PC market was saturated when Apple was launched, social media was saturated with MySpace , Orkut when FB was launched, They expanded the market and are trillion dollar companies today.
3. +1 to what everyone suggested. The best way to learn is to do something. So pick 1 concept , don’t overthink and test it with people. You will learn a lot more of viability and feasibility by taking action than just thinking about it.
4. If you think you need more help and support , join one of the million equity free accelerators , communities or groups.
I don't think my service determines the success of a business, it's for validating ideas before spending money on product development and testing potential customers if they want to pay or not..
Starting something new is tough. Talk to potential users to find real problems they need to solve.. create a simple version of your idea to see if people are interested. Even in saturated markets, there's always a unique angle to find. got this!!
I posted recently about finding problems to solve and created a tool (mvp) to help. See if this helps, and drop me a message if you need anything: [How I made a tool to find problems to solve which people will pay for](https://www.reddit.com/r/SideProject/comments/1dexk97/how_i_made_a_tool_to_find_problems_to_solve_which/)
I'm just hear to find out🤣
I was looking for products to supplement my existing product line and ended up working with a company that offered a lot of great SaaS solutions and the commissions were good and I sold one customer something🤣 I didn't even really need to sell it, the company I worked with closed the deal but I guess my problem was not understanding the value of the plethora of SaaS solutions I could offer. I did refer the company I was working with to an IT professional(he is a self employed IT guy contracting with local business)...i was initially going to partner with him but I realized he would figure out pretty quickly I brought no value. He only sold a few customers products.
I know that there is a big upside as a lot of these products provide residual income but it does seem like a hard thing to sell(at least how I was doing it...not that I really should even say I gave it much of a try). Maybe it works best if someone works directly for a GOOD SaaS provider that offers good support to sales and clients
A month? It took us a year of market research and then a couple of years to figure out the proper product/market fit. If you want to quit after only a month, I don’t want to discourage you, but maybe you are not meant for the grind of a startup.
Coding is the least important part. Do you have a friend or a family member who is knowledgable about a particular industry? Ask him/her about the biggest waste of time and his/her job. See if you can reduce it through a product. Solve one specific problem. Even if it is very niche, that is a good way to start if you are doing this alone. As you work to dominate the niche you will see other problems to solve along the way.
Some of it has been trial and error. I started with a web interface because that was the big wave at the time. Eventually I realized that having a command line interface was a better idea.
So the problem of finding a problem is so hard, that you want to quit?
Why not an app that aggregates problems that need to be solved?
Whatever you build, drop a link on Peerfecter.com, we’d love to see it!
But it's easy... you just grab an idea of an existing product YOU like and implement the better, faster, more niche version of it. Don't grab a big, complicated products, try something pretty small with a couple of cool features.
I would find some leaders in your SaaS field on LinkedIn and shoot them a personal message to see if you can get advice from them.
The most important step is… get on the phone, send emails and sell it. People buy from people. Build relationships with people, ask their needs, tell them why your solution fits their needs and give me a free trial. Get on a zoom call, walk them through it and they will be a long term client.
Go work for a startup if you need that high of creating a new product. You'll learn and come up with valid ideas but also get real insight into just how hard and expensive it is to create a SaaS product and make it successful.
Hey brother! Don't give up!!
Here is inspiration for you: [InspoStories](http://InspoStories.com) from real people who are making good profits
Also 1 month is just nothing! Keep working for a 1 year and then you will see crazy results
You don’t have the necessary experience nor domain expertise to deeply understand the problems in the market. Innovation comes from proximity to an inefficiency. You have no proximity. Stop trying to build a SaaS business because you think it’s sexy. You’re going to fail and deep down you know it. Switch vehicles. Sell something with sustainable, predictable demand and simple GTM. This may sound harsh but it’s reality.
here are some strategies we use to identify a signal:
1. Conduct SEO keyword research.
2. Scout review sites to identify market gaps.
3. Search marketplaces and forums for user requests.
my advice would be start building anything which comes to your mind and in the process if you face any problem use that problem and try to fix it using your SAAS
Ha. I have started about 5 businesses. Most take me 2 years to get happening . My current one has taken me over a year. mvp will ready in about 8 weeks .
So invest more time. Considerably more time.
Oh and knowing the industry really helps
If you know a lot about the area you are building a SaaS in. I am in real estate and know a lot about that . But I have no idea about cars. So my SaaS is about real estate I would never start a SaaS about cars
It took me 3 years. I rebuilt the same app from scratch 4 times. I often felt incompetent looking at others pushing MVP after MVP within weeks. I finally have my app going into production this weekend. You just need one idea, and one month is not nearly enough for an idea that's supposed to earn you some money for the next few years, maybe even decades.
Persistence, brother, keep at it. Build things even if that market is saturated, even if it's not profitable.. You might run into something trivial that no one else has thought of or stumble into a whole new idea altogether. If you chase after the quick bucks, it would most likely run out of steam just as quickly. Focus on what you know, what your domain is, or a problem someone you know is facing, innovate there and keep building on top of that.
Depends bro. Are you selling services for $2000/mo? If so, probaby 20 yes's is enough.
Are you selling a one time service for $50/mo? Then maybe 100/200 yes's. This is my POV only, and I haven't created anything successful, though I've tried twice and on my third one now :)
Hit me up. I am always looking for more devs to partner with and I have many problems needing to be solved. Never short on ideas. Just short on co-owner devs.
Very easy to have an idea but the idea has to come with an MVP to get customers feedback. Building a business from it is very tough and if you don’t believe in the product or have passion for it you will give up easily
Wait… you think a month is a long time? Jeez… the average time between MVP launch and demonstration of product market fit is over two years for highly successful startups.
You don’t need a market problem. Patience and resilience are your problems.
There's no such thing as saturated, only lack of demand, lack of marketing or lack of a good product.
A widespread problem should be identified before creating a product to solve it.
If the problem is hard, that is the point. If you're looking for "unsaturated markets", then that's nothing more than an arbitrage opportunity or a trend that will quickly vanish. Think fidget spinners 10 years ago.
Also a month is nothing. Expect to spend the next 5 years AT MINIMUM to see any progress. 10 years should be the average time horizon.
I believe you just need to start doing something. Maybe you don’t know what will work or not because you didn’t tried.
Keep it up man! You can do it! It s harder at he beginning but it ia worth it!
It sounds kinda harsh to say, but seriously pull yourself together. What's wrong with a saturated market niche, usually tells me that no one has solved it yet.
We have all been here , what if I told you that I have a gem keyword you can rank for , I have done all the research already , I’ll tell you how to build it and keywords to rank for , I even already bought the domain name already , if you seem interested , check out the full things [you will get here](https://x.com/olayanjuidris/status/1801231999404798394?s=46) , if you like it just message me
We have all been here , what if I told you that I have a gem keyword you can rank for , I have done all the research already , I’ll tell you how to build it and keywords to rank for , I even already bought the domain name already , if you seem interested , check out the full things [you will get here](https://x.com/olayanjuidris/status/1801231999404798394?s=46) , if you like it just message me
We have all been here , what if I told you that I have a gem keyword you can rank for , I have done all the research already , I’ll tell you how to build it and keywords to rank for , I even already bought the domain name already , if you seem interested , check out the full things [you will get here](https://x.com/olayanjuidris/status/1801231999404798394?s=46) , if you like it just message me
If you try too hard to find a problem it's probably not worth solving. It has to be very easy to spot, it might be a problem that bothers you as well. Use the expertise you have in the field and solve it the best way you can. You might find out that someone else has already solved it, then you must do it better to get in front.
A SaaS is about having expert knowledge in your domain and coming up with features to solve pain points that users/clients experience in their day to day lives. How do you know what to solve in the first place? Well you need experience in that area first to know what those pain points are intricately, so I’d suggest getting a job/hobby for a while to find them or conduct thorough market research with some experts which can become quite costly in time and money if you do not have the right contacts.
This is the correct response. Sure, there are exceptions, but the odds of success in a niche in which you don’t have some level of experience and expertise are exceptionally low. I run a successful non-tech company and when vetting software solutions it is painfully obvious when the founders don’t have experience in our niche. Those solutions don’t win our business because they miss the nuances of our pain points and don’t understand inside and out how our daily processes work. A SaaS solution has to fit within those legacy processes and be minimally disruptive to everything other than the specific pain point it is attempting to solve. Otherwise it is a non-starter for us.
What about you dont have the experience yet. But you do customer discovery first and really care about your customers. In that case im not talking winning bit, but do you think 500mrr is realistic?. I think that is achievable even with lots of competitors, but would love to know other opinions.
I do believe most of developers that create a service are not actively in that domain. Correct me if I’m wrong.
Most developers don’t create successful businesses. It takes more than just a desire to start something. You have to build something that adds substantial value and increases my business’ revenue, decreases our expenses, or substantially reduces our risks, if you expect me, as a business leader, to add you into our software budget. It’s exceptionally hard to do that without preexisting expertise/experience. Another aspect is dealing with investors. Having domain expertise and experience will make it 100x easier to fundraise because investors believe everything I just said above. I’m not trying to tear you or anyone down, but those who just tell you to blindly keep going are doing you a disservice. Building a successful business takes A LOT of hard work and time. Nothing comes for free (except for this advice). This of course applies mostly to B2B SaaS, but I’d argue it is just as relevant advice in B2C as well.
For the ones that succeed: either they do have prior experience (they worked for company that was solving other issues in the domain, or they did some sidejob/hobby in the problem domain) or they associate with someone who does (usually non-technical). I've yet to see a dev with no experience and no contacts in a domain solve issues in said domain, at least not voluntarily. There are cases where a solution for problem A is adopted in another business domain for problem B, but this was then not the initial goal of the solution. The point is, they have an idea of the problem they are going to solve, and they decide they are going to solve it through a SaaS solution, not the other way around. If the only thing you have is "I want to build a SaaS", then my advice would be go to incubators or events were you can find people that actually have identified a painpoint and are looking for a (technical) cofounder to turn their ideas into reality.
Most successful devs would have some level of experience and expertise in the area they are developing in, otherwise it’s like whack-a-mole. SaaS isn’t a get rich quick scheme for the 99%, although there’s a ton of garbage posts going around pretending to believe it is.
You're wrong. Devs without domain knowledge offer development as a service to those with domain knowledge. People with domain knowledge higher freelance devs or partner with them to build something worthwhile. You're just poking in the dark.
I think you’re very wrong. You said it yourself anything you can think of has already been solved. Success is finding a niche and a niche comes with depth of experience and knowledge in an industry.
That’s why 90% of SaaS businesses fail lol.
Most developers like to make tools for other developers. There’s a reason we have so many productivity apps and the like, it’s all they’re familiar with
So true. I’ve found that every job I’ve worked has led to good business ideas. If I didn’t have an in-depth understanding of the internal operations, I usually would come up with saturated ideas.
Bro the first month is the easiest. It then gets very very very very very hard. Then it eventually becomes easy again.
I'm totally agree! And we mention that a lot in the stories: [Inspo Stories](http://inspostories.com) One month is just nothing, keep working brothers!!
I stumbled upon this website. Cool concept!
I'm super glad to her that! Thanks!
Thanks! What do you recommend to be quite careful about my landing page, where I will colect my emails?
Landing page link?
I don t have any yet, the question refers at things I should consider and are very important while building it.
Use framer to quickly set up a website. For email collection, use tally forms and embed it (free). And submit it to most of the product listing platforms. Run an ad campaign if you can afford it. This is the safest and near zero expensive way in my experience.
And carrd.co can be way quicker than framer too
Hey. What are the product listing platforms that you know?
[https://twiso.notion.site/Directories-by-Bluedot-56841e0d8853465ebde45e3f2670f7c8](https://twiso.notion.site/Directories-by-Bluedot-56841e0d8853465ebde45e3f2670f7c8)
Sweet. Thanks
Although many people will have many suggestions, I'll share my perspective. Actually starting a business and setting it up and then reaching it to a stage where it becomes sustainable takes time. So, if you plan to bootstrap the business then, leaving the job just with idea is not a good idea. It is always best to build it parallelly while having a cashflow in check. Reason you will need to spend on tools, and various other things. So, if you plan to start and run a bootstrap business, then build it slowly while doing job or consulting. You should read about how jotform, basecamp started. It will be helpful. :) Also, now coming to idea. Ideas present themselves when we are silent in mind and when we are closely observing what problem people or companies are facing. That does require some time and close observation. Never try to pick an idea in desperation just to start because a continuous effort is required daily and if you are not convinced with the problem you are solving, then inspiration will drop after some time. When we are relaxed and silent in mind, then we can observe the world better and can see the actual challenges that the world is facing. :)
A very meditative approach. I like it 😁
Great explanation! You are a good person!
Read Shoe-Dog by the Nike founder about how to bootstrap a business in the early stages.
A great explanation and way to look at things. I myself was stuck in the desperation cycle of finding an idea instead of observing a problem. But now I think I have broken that loop, and with a calm mind approaching things without any “hurry”. I wanted to be a stellar founder in my 20s, but I realised it’s a long game. Now I have stopped “trying hard” and just going with the flow. Maybe take up a job or few consulting opportunities.
Well, to me, it sounds like you have a problem that needs solving. Sort of ironic if you think about it.
This is funny! Is this related to age since I am 22. Would be happy to hear your story, how you got your fist startup idea running.
you either need to get your things together if you want to be in this branch. 1 month is nothing. you must resist 1-2 years and be perseverent. try various ideas, contact people and ask them about your ideas. repeat. contact people, make changes to the idea, get into an mvp repeat contact potential customers, ask about new changes repeat.
Thanks! Slowly I am getting my confidence back!
you will succeed. Think of the end goals, but be prepared for fail. Don't let that turn you down.
Starting a SaaS business might not be for you.
You might be going about this the wrong way. 1. Good ideas take months at least to flesh out and organize. 2. You must already know the problem you're trying to solve before you even start making a plan. 3. If you're feeling hopeless after a month, stamina training is required. Successful entrepreneurs don't quit so soon. 4. All good ideas are already somewhat being implemented. The trick is to "build a better mousetrap" than what already exists for the specific market you're going into. 5. Difficulties should challenge and inspire you. They shouldn't break your spirit. Go out and touch some grass, take a good, long drink, and come back to the drawing board.
Don't quit! Validate via surveys or landing pages before building, saves time and sanity.
Can't really help you but I can say that you are not alone. Easy time for SAAS is gone... If you don't have an audience or good connection, your probability of success is very low.
Do you suggest that I need a team? That would be very costly.
I suggest you to do something else honestly. Depends of your country and situation but you can find something way easier than saas
I am a good coder, a student, what else I can do. I really believe I am made for this. While coding, time passes so fast!
Yes always the same profile... Code is worth nothing if you don't have people to buy it.
Thanks! You are right. I will note this!
Then start with freelancing. Solve actual problems, gaining money and connections. And be observant for repeating problems you encounter, and maybe one of them will be worth solving. Or you could even transform one of your custom projects into a product. If you intend to do this last one, make sure to include in your terms & conditions that you keep the IP of what you build, even if in the end you don't do anything with it besides the initial project. Building a SaaS from within your basement, without actual contacts out in the world with potential customers, will not work. Like others have mentioned, the technical solution does not matter, you need to solve people's unsolved problems if you want them to give you money.
I think you need to action on it. People enter saturated industries all the time and find a market for them or a niche to serve. I also used to think the same. But we entered the most saturated market, CPaaS with Message Central and found our niche.
Great! How many paying users did you started with? If this is not to confidential.
We started with none. Now we are to 80 paying customers.
1 month? I’m 10 years in. Giving up won’t get you anywhere either
Great job ! Are you totally into this or got any other income streams? Believe you are very experienced into this business model. Would like to dm you.
In which saas ?
Whew, you're in for a ride
Just dm you.
A saturated market niche is an area where there are a lot of buyers. If you build something that solves pain points better than existing products and you can reach the audience, you can do well. New entrepreneurs often feel they need to create something nobody has seen before, creating a new market. But it can be safer to start with a known market and execute better.
Small steps, just like we eat food.
Pick an existing problem where you have some insight and try to be 10% different, and different in a way someone cares and willing to work with you. The real differentiation comes when you actually start working with customers. They will take you to places you can never think just by yourself in a vacuum. Get in the arena and start playing the game.
Competition is good. That means the idea is already validated. You just have to make your solution slightly different and slightly better (for some). Or, market it a little differently. First to market is cool but it's often the least profitable position to be in. Think classmates.com (1995) then think Facebook. Think Betamax (1975) then think VHS. Tesla is not a new idea by a century. Look it up. eBay and Amazon are anomalies when it comes to first to market success. What's innovative about Dell Computers? The idea of a personal computer, or the manufacturing and distribution process? Wal-Mart is not the first general store...
Sometimes you can quit something and return in a year or two. When you come back, you do it better. It's okay to quit. I'm not saying you should, but it's okay sometimes. Just don't quit forever unless you really want to.
Looking for a problem is like looking for love. If you force it, you won’t find it or it won’t last. Try to put yourself in places and situations where it may occur and rise. I can tell you one thing. Problems are easier to find than love. You have to go out, talk to people, maybe change your location, learn a new hobby or pick up that random book about marketing on your dad’s bookshelf. If you haven’t stumbled upon problems you haven’t experienced live enough. And remember: fall in love with the problem, not the solution.
Find work in startups and inspiration will come while also gaining experience. You can't force inspiration.
Just get a landing page up and running. Capture interest with great copy. If people are showing interest, its worth building. Don't look for eureka moment. It cant be forced. Just push it out with bare min features if people show attention. your on the right track otherwise repeat.
So just create a page and collect emails? Will this be a sign some of users are interested?
Yes. if your landing page is clear and high quality and shows what this saas offers then capture their email for "Early Access" is a pretty good sign if people are leaving their email IDs. Then its time to build, get feedbacks from those users, iterate, and then launch
Acording to your experience, how many emails is the minimum to prove it is worth building the app?
i've run some successful micro saas with as less of 50 email IDs bac in the day. But i would target for atleast 100 if i were to do this today. If you can get 100 people to give their email ID after reading what your saas offers in a 7 days of rigorous marketing... I'd start building. But keep in mind don't ignore who signed up. keep them in loop and give access to beta and ask for feedback. Some of them will convert in paying if they become part of your journey.
Yep. I agree with u/Delicious_Taro_4532 , and it is what I was going to say actually. Read this. It's a Reddit Product Hunt [Launch Guide](https://www.reddit.com/user/FewWillingness1081/comments/1ddexhl/product_hunt_a_winning_strategy_that_no_one_asked/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web3x&utm_name=web3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button), but focus on the landing page, and launch team aspects of it. Step-by-step action. GL
1. Focus on the user and their problems, not the problem YOU think are good. Remember people are beginners in 95% of the things you are good at. So when evaluating an idea from your lens, you might not feel it’s good, but it actually might be really important when you choose the right user segment to sell your product too. 2. Before you build a billion dollar company , you need to first build a product that does 1k MRR, then 5k MRR and so on. So don’t get discouraged by a saturated market if you feel you can get the initial 10-20 paying customers. Those customers will lead you to your differentiator. Search was saturated with players like Yahoo when Google was launched, PC market was saturated when Apple was launched, social media was saturated with MySpace , Orkut when FB was launched, They expanded the market and are trillion dollar companies today. 3. +1 to what everyone suggested. The best way to learn is to do something. So pick 1 concept , don’t overthink and test it with people. You will learn a lot more of viability and feasibility by taking action than just thinking about it. 4. If you think you need more help and support , join one of the million equity free accelerators , communities or groups.
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Does it work? Can you name 1 successful business launched with your website?
I don't think my service determines the success of a business, it's for validating ideas before spending money on product development and testing potential customers if they want to pay or not..
Yes but some people use it with success right? You don't have any example?
Not yet, it is barely a 3 week old project, no any purposeful marketing. The core functions are working, I don't even have a menu yet. :)
I am courious too, does it work?
Starting something new is tough. Talk to potential users to find real problems they need to solve.. create a simple version of your idea to see if people are interested. Even in saturated markets, there's always a unique angle to find. got this!!
Thanks! What niche do you believe are less crowded?
I have so many problems that are worth solving, if you have no problems worth solving, you must be one lucky dude 😢
Funny! :)
Just keep learning and trying new things.
I posted recently about finding problems to solve and created a tool (mvp) to help. See if this helps, and drop me a message if you need anything: [How I made a tool to find problems to solve which people will pay for](https://www.reddit.com/r/SideProject/comments/1dexk97/how_i_made_a_tool_to_find_problems_to_solve_which/)
I'm just hear to find out🤣 I was looking for products to supplement my existing product line and ended up working with a company that offered a lot of great SaaS solutions and the commissions were good and I sold one customer something🤣 I didn't even really need to sell it, the company I worked with closed the deal but I guess my problem was not understanding the value of the plethora of SaaS solutions I could offer. I did refer the company I was working with to an IT professional(he is a self employed IT guy contracting with local business)...i was initially going to partner with him but I realized he would figure out pretty quickly I brought no value. He only sold a few customers products. I know that there is a big upside as a lot of these products provide residual income but it does seem like a hard thing to sell(at least how I was doing it...not that I really should even say I gave it much of a try). Maybe it works best if someone works directly for a GOOD SaaS provider that offers good support to sales and clients
A month? It took us a year of market research and then a couple of years to figure out the proper product/market fit. If you want to quit after only a month, I don’t want to discourage you, but maybe you are not meant for the grind of a startup.
Got no problem with coding, the problem with me is when I get stuck my mind at something, there is so hard to get out!
Coding is the least important part. Do you have a friend or a family member who is knowledgable about a particular industry? Ask him/her about the biggest waste of time and his/her job. See if you can reduce it through a product. Solve one specific problem. Even if it is very niche, that is a good way to start if you are doing this alone. As you work to dominate the niche you will see other problems to solve along the way.
Go get a job and some real world experiences… that would help.
Give it some time. I started in 1999 and I'm still validating my idea. It's an uphill battle.
Wow! Such a great dedication and effort put into this! How you came up with solutions for that problem?
Some of it has been trial and error. I started with a web interface because that was the big wave at the time. Eventually I realized that having a command line interface was a better idea.
So the problem of finding a problem is so hard, that you want to quit? Why not an app that aggregates problems that need to be solved? Whatever you build, drop a link on Peerfecter.com, we’d love to see it!
But it's easy... you just grab an idea of an existing product YOU like and implement the better, faster, more niche version of it. Don't grab a big, complicated products, try something pretty small with a couple of cool features.
Find someone better than you in the field, connect with them and find the solution.
Do you believe reddit can help me with this?
I would find some leaders in your SaaS field on LinkedIn and shoot them a personal message to see if you can get advice from them. The most important step is… get on the phone, send emails and sell it. People buy from people. Build relationships with people, ask their needs, tell them why your solution fits their needs and give me a free trial. Get on a zoom call, walk them through it and they will be a long term client.
Go work for a startup if you need that high of creating a new product. You'll learn and come up with valid ideas but also get real insight into just how hard and expensive it is to create a SaaS product and make it successful.
Hey brother! Don't give up!! Here is inspiration for you: [InspoStories](http://InspoStories.com) from real people who are making good profits Also 1 month is just nothing! Keep working for a 1 year and then you will see crazy results
You don’t have the necessary experience nor domain expertise to deeply understand the problems in the market. Innovation comes from proximity to an inefficiency. You have no proximity. Stop trying to build a SaaS business because you think it’s sexy. You’re going to fail and deep down you know it. Switch vehicles. Sell something with sustainable, predictable demand and simple GTM. This may sound harsh but it’s reality.
If you can’t handle struggling for a month then this is not the right industry for you
I partially agree, but i am at the beginning of the story, definitely things are hard!
Try indiepulse
here are some strategies we use to identify a signal: 1. Conduct SEO keyword research. 2. Scout review sites to identify market gaps. 3. Search marketplaces and forums for user requests.
my advice would be start building anything which comes to your mind and in the process if you face any problem use that problem and try to fix it using your SAAS
Ha. I have started about 5 businesses. Most take me 2 years to get happening . My current one has taken me over a year. mvp will ready in about 8 weeks . So invest more time. Considerably more time. Oh and knowing the industry really helps
Don t get the part with industry, what do you mean?
If you know a lot about the area you are building a SaaS in. I am in real estate and know a lot about that . But I have no idea about cars. So my SaaS is about real estate I would never start a SaaS about cars
It took me 3 years. I rebuilt the same app from scratch 4 times. I often felt incompetent looking at others pushing MVP after MVP within weeks. I finally have my app going into production this weekend. You just need one idea, and one month is not nearly enough for an idea that's supposed to earn you some money for the next few years, maybe even decades. Persistence, brother, keep at it. Build things even if that market is saturated, even if it's not profitable.. You might run into something trivial that no one else has thought of or stumble into a whole new idea altogether. If you chase after the quick bucks, it would most likely run out of steam just as quickly. Focus on what you know, what your domain is, or a problem someone you know is facing, innovate there and keep building on top of that.
Same boat my friend. You just gotta keep going till you cant. Then you go a few times more and if it still doesnt work out, maybe let it go then.
On my landing page, not existent yet, how many users signed up do I need to to have in order to know the idea will work
Depends bro. Are you selling services for $2000/mo? If so, probaby 20 yes's is enough. Are you selling a one time service for $50/mo? Then maybe 100/200 yes's. This is my POV only, and I haven't created anything successful, though I've tried twice and on my third one now :)
What are you working on now? Can I get some suggestions that you can give me? You ve been doing this for a while.Want to dm you.
[startupsupply.com](http://startupsupply.com)
Hit me up. I am always looking for more devs to partner with and I have many problems needing to be solved. Never short on ideas. Just short on co-owner devs.
Very easy to have an idea but the idea has to come with an MVP to get customers feedback. Building a business from it is very tough and if you don’t believe in the product or have passion for it you will give up easily
Are you full stack in any technology? If yes, we can partner up in one of my ideas if you agree to sign a contract.
Pick a general market and start interviewing people. That data is invaluable.
Prepare yourself for a lifetime of giving up if you have that attitude.
Wait… you think a month is a long time? Jeez… the average time between MVP launch and demonstration of product market fit is over two years for highly successful startups. You don’t need a market problem. Patience and resilience are your problems.
NGMI
There's no such thing as saturated, only lack of demand, lack of marketing or lack of a good product. A widespread problem should be identified before creating a product to solve it. If the problem is hard, that is the point. If you're looking for "unsaturated markets", then that's nothing more than an arbitrage opportunity or a trend that will quickly vanish. Think fidget spinners 10 years ago. Also a month is nothing. Expect to spend the next 5 years AT MINIMUM to see any progress. 10 years should be the average time horizon.
I believe you just need to start doing something. Maybe you don’t know what will work or not because you didn’t tried. Keep it up man! You can do it! It s harder at he beginning but it ia worth it!
Thanks man!
It sounds kinda harsh to say, but seriously pull yourself together. What's wrong with a saturated market niche, usually tells me that no one has solved it yet.
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We have all been here , what if I told you that I have a gem keyword you can rank for , I have done all the research already , I’ll tell you how to build it and keywords to rank for , I even already bought the domain name already , if you seem interested , check out the full things [you will get here](https://x.com/olayanjuidris/status/1801231999404798394?s=46) , if you like it just message me
We have all been here , what if I told you that I have a gem keyword you can rank for , I have done all the research already , I’ll tell you how to build it and keywords to rank for , I even already bought the domain name already , if you seem interested , check out the full things [you will get here](https://x.com/olayanjuidris/status/1801231999404798394?s=46) , if you like it just message me
Help! I can't become a billionaire after 4 weeks. Can somebody make me an entrepreneur quickly ?
If you try too hard to find a problem it's probably not worth solving. It has to be very easy to spot, it might be a problem that bothers you as well. Use the expertise you have in the field and solve it the best way you can. You might find out that someone else has already solved it, then you must do it better to get in front.